Honest Liars
by the indecisive bird
Summary: After celebrating another win at the Building Competition, Aiden finds the perfect opportunity to bother Jesse- in the form of her sitting alone at Endercon. (Formerly 'She hates me, she hates me not')
1. Alone

**A/N: idk with the title.**

 **i'm just writing these on a whim, now. don't expect good writing.**

 **so i found a writing prompt that basically said 'how do you feel when you love someone who doesn't love you back?' and i thought**

 **how do you feel when you HATE someone who doesn't hate you back?**

 **:D**

* * *

Endercon was...almost uneventful, this year. It was the Ocelots' eighth consecutive win at the Building Competition, which was something that almost everyone saw coming at this point. They'd celebrated their victory at the convention, which lasted until the late evening.

They'd eventually split up to enjoy themselves at the con, with Lukas and Gill going off to look at a new booth, and Maya off to do her own thing.

Which left Aiden.

And he didn't exactly have anything to do that night.

So just this one night, he decided to leave for home early. He could always come back tomorrow, it wasn't like the con only lasted a single night.

It's just that there was this one person just outside of town who he hadn't expected to see.

Sitting alone on a bench was none other than Jesse, the leader of the group of pathetic losers that has been competing, and losing, against the Ocelots for seven years straight. She was in her usual clothes, green shirt and dirt yellow overalls (was it a uniform for her?), but over that was an olive green hoodie with black spots spread all over it, which was actually a poorly made Creeper cosplay, with the hood barely covering the part of her hair that was dyed red.

She had dyed it a few weeks before the building competition, something he found to be an incredibly bold and an incredibly stupid move, considering the fact that the dye was permanent. In his opinion, it only made her look sillier than she already was.

He didn't hide his thoughts on it. Or the 'creeper' hoodie, for that matter.

She only gave him a grin and a thumbs up.

Which was... unusual of her, considering her behavior the past seven years. Most of the time, she'd only frown whenever he gave her a snide remark- and there was a time, he remembered, that she nearly cried. That might have been her first year in the competition, actually.

He had a good laugh then.

...Although, now that he looked closer at her.. was she crying?

She must be. Or maybe she wasn't, he couldn't tell.

He stood for a couple of moments, watching her, debating on whether he should go and talk to her or not.

* * *

 **sO WHY NOT DO A THING WHERE THERE ARE TWO OTHER CHAPTERS**

 **AND ONE IS WHERE HE DOESN'T TALK TO HER**

 **AND ANOTHER IS WHERE HE DOES :'D**

 **ok bye hahah have a good day. i'll fix it when i can smh**

 **also please tell me what you think ;-; reviews are highly appreciated**


	2. Talk to her

_Oh, what the hell?_

Aiden looked back at Endercon, then made his way over to the lonely bench, his hands tucked in his pockets.

Jesse was playing with her red bangs (which were starting to cover her eyes. She needed a haircut), sniffling every once in a while as a tear went down her cheek, when she saw a figure approaching her. She quickly rubbed her tears away with the sleeve of her jacket, then put her hands under her thighs and began to swing her legs. The lights from Endercon were now blocked by Aiden's tall form standing over her.

The feeling of him staring at her was hard to ignore. She sniffed, and brought a hand up to scratch her nose.

He smirked at this. She was back to normal- quiet- compared to how she was earlier at the competition. Now that Aiden thought about it, she had gone quiet ever since he mocked her for her red hair and cosplay.

He must be doing his job right.

"Have you been crying?"

She flinched, then looked up at him, brushing aside her red bangs so that most of it would be on the left. "I-I'm sorry?"

"Couldn't handle not winning the competition?"

She stared at him, long enough for Aiden to see how red her eyes and nose were, before she breathed a laugh. "N-No, it's not that." She looked away, instead focusing on the display of his team's build just by the entrance to the convention.

"Then what were you crying about?"

"I-It's.." She sniffed, "It's nothing."

 _Liar_. Aiden raised a brow as she began to bit her lip and swing her feet, avoiding his gaze entirely. "Sure, it isn't."

"Ngh.." The younger girl ran a hand through her hair, causing both her hood and bangs to fall down. They fell in front of her face again, almost completely obstructing her dark brown eyes from view. She jerked her head and flipped her bangs away from her face, moving them to the right this time.

She clearly wasn't going to be answering that question anytime soon.

Okay.

"So," he began, "where're the pork and the other losers? Did they dump you here or something?"

Jesse frowned upon hearing this, but didn't comment. "Olivia and Axel are buying some stuff. Petra's out handling a deal... I think." She said, "Reuben's back home."

"Are they buying more bad cosplay?" He asked, referring to Axel and Olivia, his tone of voice making it obvious that he was making fun of her outfit, "Or are they gonna dye their hair, too?"

"Goodness, no," she laughed, "don't put that image in my head."

A smile tugged at Aiden's lips. "Thing is, I can understand leaving the pork behind, but you?" He scoffed, "Hah! And I'd thought they'd never leave you."

"They didn't leave me." She said, frowning, "I.. I hope... B-But if they did, it's okay, 'cause I still have Reuben."

"What if he left you?"

She went silent at this, looking down as she shuffled her feet nervously. It lasted for several seconds, until she spoke again. "Then I'll be alone." Her voice was almost too quiet for him to hear.

"Abandoned by a pig.." Aiden mused aloud, "Rather pathetic to hear, don't you think?"

She hummed in agreement. Then she raised her head back up to look at the build behind the entrance to Endercon. After a somewhat long pause, she spoke again. "Speaking of pigs.. Reuben said your build was stupid." She said. He could barely hear her, this time. "He really doesn't like you guys."

He stifled a laugh. "A pig doesn't like us?"

She shrugged. "Well," she scratched a spot behind her ear, "He actually said hate. He hates you."

Aiden looked at her curiously.

"Do _you_ hate us?"

* * *

 **i don't know how to segway conversations. How do you segway conversations.**

 **Look, i'll fix it when i can i just**

 **wow i don't know what i'm doing with this**

 **IT WAS JUST SUPPOSED TO BE TWO CHAPTERS**

 **BUT NOPE :'D**

 **Please leave a review. Please. Critiques are welcome. thoughts are welcome. Pre episode 5 Aiden-like behavior, however, isn't.**

 **i wanna know what you think. AND BY THAt i don't just mean Ariza and Emily, i do mean the other people who read this. I really wanna know what you guys think of this**

 **please**

 **the one where he just leaves and doesn't talk to her will be posted...after all the needed chapters are done. Which i hope to the heavens would just be four. Just four chapters. (The first one, this one, and two others. Hopefully that's all it takes)**

 **have a good day!**

 **edit;; just fixed a tiny detail.**


	3. 6 years ago

_6 Years Ago, some time before Jesse's first competition with Olivia and Axel._

* * *

Olivia, Jesse and Axel would have been at the Endercon Building Competition, had it not been for the fact that it was cancelled a few days ago. A really bad storm was predicted to come at around the time of the competition.

Whoever made that prediction was right.

The group was huddled underground, their 'bunker' only big enough to fit the four of them.

Inside the makeshift bunker, Reuben was stuffing his face with cookies, Jesse was digging the surrounding dirt, and Olivia was trying her best to read a Redstone guide book in the light of a single torch. Axel was out to grab some extra supplies, something the two girls had objected to because of the storm.

He was stubborn.

The 'room' was silent, save for the muffled sound of rain coming from above, the sound of Reuben eating cookies, and Jesse digging dirt with her bare hands.

"Don't dig, Jesse." Olivia said without looking away from her book, sounding like an older sister telling her younger sibling what to do. (Which she might as well have been.) "You might cause a landslide."

"Sorry."

The younger girl immediately refilled the spaces she dug, until there was only enough room for them to stand, and for Axel to duck his head to even be able to do that. After her task was done, she sat down beside Reuben.

Silence had filled the room once more, until Jesse spoke up.

"Why don't you guys like them?"

Olivia looked up from her book, confused by the sudden question.

"Why don't we like who?" She asked Jesse, who began to wipe her hands on her overalls, removing the dirt from them.

"The Ocelots."

Jesse first met the Ocelots a year back, while she was out hunting for food with Olivia. They had bumped into them a few other times. It never ended well. She didn't ask anything besides 'Who are they?' Just recently, she and Axel had a run in with the other group at a mine as they were gathering materials for the build. Specifically, with Aiden and Gill. Axel got home fuming, while Jesse was just as confused as ever.

 _Is that what brought it up?_

Axel suddenly popped his head into the room, letting the rain in in the process. He was soaking wet, even with his hood on. "I heard the word 'Ocelots,' what's this about?"

"Jesse's asking why we don't like them." Olivia said, flatly. "Hurry, you're letting the rain inside."

"Oh-oomph." He stumbled in, landing on his stomach. "That's easy. Because they're jerks."

Jesse frowned at his answer as she stood to help the older boy up. He handed her some fishes, which she held in one hand as she helped him stand with the other. "That's not very nice."

Reuben raised his head from the pile of cookies he was stuffing his face with, and turned to Jesse, bewildered. Olivia and Axel felt the same way. "Jesse, _they're_ not nice."

The youngest of the three closed a chest shut, an oven in her hand. She placed the oven beside the chest as she asked, "How so?"

Axel sighed, exasperated, as he took of his jacket. "You only spawned three years ago, you wouldn't get it." He said dismissively. Jesse's frown deepened upon hearing this. She gave something like a glare to Axel, pursing her lips, before she closed up the hole he went through with dirt. She then walked to the chest, at the farther side of the room, with the raw fishes in hand.

Olivia glowered at him. "Axel." She whispered (or hissed), tugging at the sleeve of his shirt.

"What?" He whispered back, "It's true!"

The two looked at the girl, who had begun to cook the fishes with some sticks.

Olivia hoped she didn't hear.

"That doesn't mean she wouldn't get it." She said, her voice low. Axel had the awful habit of being insensitive sometimes. She would know, she'd experienced it first hand a few years before.

Axel scoffed. "Try her."

The girl groaned inwardly. She was about to get up to talk to Jesse, except the other girl had beaten her to it. She came back to them with the cooked fishes, handing one to each of them. She offered one to Reuben, who declined it, favoring the cookies instead (he had one left, she'd noticed). So she pocketed the last one in her inventory, then sat down in front of Axel and Olivia.

"So," she said, before she took a bite of her fish, "why don't you guys like them?"

Olivia took in a deep breath, trying to think of a way to say it in a way that Jesse would understand. It didn't take her long.

"It's because they go out of their way to put down people who they think are inferior to them." She said, her tone of voice making it sound like she was talkingt to a child.

"How do they do that?"

"By telling them lies."

The younger girl chewed her fish in thought. "Do they tell you lies?"

Olivia nodded.

Jesse's brows furrowed. "Then why do they tell me the truth?"

Olivia turned her head to Axel, who shrugged as if saying 'What are you looking at me for?' She sighed.

"What do you mean by that?"

It was Jesse's turn to shrug. "I dunno. They just... tell me the truth."

"What do they tell you?" Olivia asked, even though she already knew the answer.

Axel responded for her. "So far, the Ocelots have called her stupid, useless, an idiot, a waste of space, mentally ill... I could list down more, if you want."

Olivia raised a hand to stop him. "I was asking Jesse."

Axel grumbled under his breath, but said nothing. Olivia glanced at him, before she turned back to Jesse.

The girl just shrugged. "What Axel said. Aren't those true?" She asked, genuinely confused.

"No, Jesse.." Olivia scratched the nape of her neck, "That's not true, don't listen to them."

Jesse blinked at her, then looked down. "Okay."

She moved so that she sat beside Reuben, leaning on the wall as she did so. She stayed quiet for the rest of the night.

Olivia sighed, removing her beanie and running a hand through her hair. "I'm not looking forward to the competition.."

"Relax," Axel said, finishing the last of his salmon, "We've got this."

The girl gave him an unsure glance, before she leaned on the wall behind her and finally began to eat her own salmon.

She couldn't help but disagree.

* * *

 **A/N: no joke this is the longest thing i've written thus far**

 **i mean. Not in general, i've written longer. Just that this one's the longest document of all the current ones right now. ._.**

 **anyway. Urgent question! Should I do a flashback from Aiden's perspective too? It won't exactly be set in the same time as this one, but...**

 **i mean i didn't originally plan for one from him, but if you want a clearer version of his perspective, then...**

 **..just please tell me ;;-;;**

 **Have a good day!**

 **GUEST REVIEW REPLIES:**

 **Writer- right? I really like Aiden/Jesse things. Don't know why. I'M SORRY Q_Q at least this one is longer? You will get more!.. i think. Uhm. I mean if there will be an Aiden flashback, then you get two to three more. If no Aiden flashback, then just the last part and the bonus. :I**

 **Misty- eeee thANK YOU! :D**


	4. 8 years ago

**A/N: here i thought that i'd only need two more chapters ._.**

* * *

 _About 8 years prior  
_

* * *

It was about a quarter until seven, the moon was close to rising, and the Ocelots were tired.

"I'm sorry," Gill said as they began to set up camp, "Who thought it was a good idea for all of us to go out mining?"

"Okay, for the record-" Lukas raised a hand, pointing at Gill, "I only suggested that _someone_ go out and mine for coal. I _did not_ bring up going to the other side of the world."

Gill laughed. "I didn't even say anything yet."

"No," The blonde set down a crafting table, "But you were going to."

"Hey, at least you didn't kick the map into a creek." The teenager glanced at his two other friends, who were currently cutting the leaves of trees, most likely in the hopes of finding apples."Unlike SOME people!" He raised his voice and cupped his hands at that last part, making sure the other two heard.

Maya smiled an annoyed smile. "Gill?"

"Yeah?"

She turned to him. "Shut up."

He grinned. "Not gonna!"

Aiden laughed, causing the girl to turn to him too. She slapped his arm with a branch. He yelped.

"What was that for?!" He asked, rubbing the spot where she slapped him.

"You had a part in it too!"

"Pfft," he waved his hand dismissively, "no I didn't."

She raised a brow. "Sure you didn't."

"Hey!"

They both turned their heads to their blond friend, who tossed them some stone swords, both of which Aiden caught. "While you two are arguing, could you go and hunt us some food while you're at it?"

"Why won't you do it?"

He raised the wood and wool blocks in his hands. "Beds!"

Maya sighs. "Alright, fine!" She grabs a hold of Aiden's hoodie, and begins to leave the camp site. "Come on."

* * *

The two trudged through the forest, their inventories completely empty, save for the leaves that they had mined just earlier.

"Why aren't there any animals out here?" Aiden wondered aloud. "Shouldn't there be, I dunno, a lot around here?"

"Maybe they're hiding from the mobs?" Maya suggested.

Aiden shook his head dismissively. "Nah, animals aren't that smart."

Maya smiled, saying in a sing-song, "You never know~"

He gave her a tired smile, before turning to look for any potential mobs or food. He turned around when he heard Maya giggle.

"Maya?"

He almost couldn't understand what she was saying through her laughter, which she was trying to keep from being heard. She motioned for him to come over and hide in the bush, which he did with a very confused expression on his face. "What is it?" He whispered to her. She only pointed to the clearing in front of them. He looked.

In the clearing was a girl in yellow overalls, sitting cross legged on the ground as she waved a stick in the air. On her lap was a sleeping piglet, which didn't seem to be bothered by her reciting..something..loudly.

"...Something people tell others to deceive them.." She threw the stick in the air, "..something they do to make them look the other way." The stick landed behind her. "...To put it simply- the manipulation of other's thoughts."

Aiden stifled a laugh. "'The hell is she doing?" He whispered. Maya shook her head.

She twisted around to look at the stick, then turned back. Then she got up and walked over to pick up the stick. She turned her back to Aiden and Maya, then she began to walk from one end to the other. "Truth. Noun. A verified or indisputable act. It is what actually happened. It is what's real."

 _What's her issue here?_ Aiden thought in his head.

"It is always right.." She dropped the stick, stopping in her tracks. "..but it's not always good."

"She's so _weird_." Maya whispered. _That's true_ , Aiden thought, _but maybe not so much in a bad way. She's... intriguing_.

"Jesse!"

The girl looked up, as did Maya and Aiden, to see a dark skinned girl in a white polo shirt walk over. She held in one hand a stone sword, and in another a piece of mutton, which she proceeded to pocket in her inventory. She held out the free hand to the other girl, "Come on, we need to get home."

'Olivia?' Aiden muttered, confused.

"Somebody's watching us."

Olivia blinked. "What do you mean?"

Jesse pointed at the bushes where Maya and Aiden were hiding in. "Over there. Someone is watching us."

Olivia followed where Jesse was pointing, immediately spotting the pair in the bushes. Said pair was caught between running and staying.

They chose to stay. Aiden stood up from behind the bush, his hands up as if he were surrendering. "Alright, alright, you got me." He smiled, then tilted his head to Jesse. "So who's the new girl, Liv?"

The girl pointed her sword at him, but not in such a way that she was threatening to fight him. "That nickname is reserved for friends." She took a few steps closer so that she was in front of Jesse, who picked up the sleeping piglet that she had laid on the floor earlier. "And she's no one you should be concerned about."

"Y'sure?" He asked, his eyes darting over to the brunette in question, "She gave me a pretty good first impression, I'd love to know her." Jesse was staring blankly at him, doing absolutely nothing.

Olivia sighed, annoyed. "Aiden, would you just go?"

Aiden grinned. "Nope, no.. I think I'm staying." He put his hands in his hoodie's pockets, then turned his attention to Jesse, who was walking closer to them. "So, your name's Jesse, right?"

She only blinked. Then she nodded. Maya decided to choose this moment to reveal herself as well, causing Jesse to jump at her sudden appearance. "So did you pick her up from a hospital for weirdos, or was it some place else?"

Olivia glared, then turned to Jesse and held her arm. "You know what? We don't have time for this." She began to walk away, Jesse in tow, "Let's get going, Jesse. Axel's probably already home."

But Jesse didn't budge. She kept her eyes on Aiden. Then, she asked, "Are you a liar?"

Aiden blinked at the question. Then smiled, deciding to humor her. "I'm not a liar."

She hummed. "That's good."

"Jesse," Olivia tugged at her arm, "Come on, let's go."

This time, Jesse followed Olivia and walked with her. She turned her head to look back, giving them one last look, before she turned to look forward, disappearing into the trees with Olivia.

Aiden and Maya watched the two go. Then the girl turned to look at Aiden."New girl, huh? What'cha think of her?"

He paused to think about his response. "Interesting."

"Oooh..." Maya put her hands on her hips, "Aiden finds the new girl interesting, does he?"

He gave her an unimpressed look, before he slapped her arm. "Shut up."

She laughed as they both turned to walk back to the campsite. "So much for hunting for food."

Aiden sighed, then shrugged. "What can we do? I'm sure Lukas will understand."

"Or maybe Gill went hunting for us."

"That too."

As they walked back, Aiden's thoughts returned to the girl at the clearing- to Jesse. To her reciting her own definition of the word 'truth' and..something else.

 _"Are you a liar?"_

He smiled. That meeting was more than enough for his interests to be piqued.

He looked forward to seeing her again.

* * *

 **A/N: this story went from 'how aiden would feel when he finds out jesse didn't hate him' to...whatever this mess is**

 **anyway. I realized that I needed one more chapter for context. even though I could easily fit it in here, but** **..I don't know, don't really feel like jamming a bunch of flashbacks into one chapter.**

 **So..that's three flashbacks total before Jesse answers Aiden's question.**

 **i totally planned this out, right :'D**

 **WAIT! BUt, I just need to know- so far, what do you think exactly? What do you think of Jesse, of Aiden.. what do you think Jesse's answer is going to be and what her reason is? I.. I just need to know. it's important, for the context chapter.  
**

 **..i should think so, at least.**

 **Reviews are appreciated. Thoughts are welcome, critiques are welcome. Pre-Episode 5 Aiden-like behavior, however, isn't welcome.**

 **Have a good day! :D**

 **p.s. spot the reference :**


	5. Context

**A/N: THIS REACHED 500 VIEWS EARLIER WOW**

 **THANKS?**

* * *

 _5 years ago_

It was the time of the Endercon Building Competition again. The build the Ocelots had planned required a material that absolutely no one in the group could possibly manage to obtain themselves. Luckily for them, Lukas was friends with someone who could get it for them.

He was able to make the deal with Petra a few weeks back. They'd agreed on Petra just coming over to his place, so that the trade could double as a hangout.

Which is what they were doing now. They were both lazily sitting on opposite sides of the couch, trying to calm down after laughing over a story Lukas was telling her involving Maya and a creek. Said girl was just leaving for the kitchen, after having been there to remind Lukas of the incident, causing him to tell Petra.

"Come to think of it.." Lukas said in between pants. They were both still trying to calm down. Maya was completely gone from the room, by then. "That was the same day she and Aiden met Jesse, I think."

Petra blinked. "Really?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I think so. They'd told us about her when they got back from 'hunting.'" He huffed, "They didn't actually get any food, though."

"What'd they tell you?" Petra asked, apparently having already calmed down.

He shrugged. "They said she was a 'weirdo' who liked to recite her own definition of the word 'truth.' That's all I know."

"Well," Petra clicked her tongue, "They're not wrong about the second part."

He rested his head with two fingers as he leaned on the cushion of the couch. "You're friends with her, aren't you?"

The older girl hummed. "Yeah."

"Any idea why she does that?" He asked her, "Just asking."

She brought her knees to her chest, then rested her arms on each knee. "She's got.. a grudge. Against lies." She explained, "Olivia told me that she just spawned like that. She'd remind herself of that by reciting her definition of truths and lies."

The blonde crossed his arms, thoughtful. "A grudge against lies?"

"Yep."

Silence filled the room for a short moment, neither of the two friends knowing what to say. Petra eventually broke it.

"She looks up to you guys." She said, "Did you know that?"

He shook his head, blinking in surprise. "She does?" The redhead nodded.

"Yeah. She told me that you guys are one of the best builders she knows."

"One of?"

Petra smiled. "She said Olivia and Axel are the very best."

This caused Lukas to chuckle. "Of course."

"But she really does." Petra said, "It's.. pretty adorable, when you hear her talk about it."

Hearing the word 'adorable' caused Lukas to remember something regarding one of his other friends. "Aiden thinks she's adorable." He frowned. "Whenever she's about to cry, that is."

This caused Petra to scowl. "Is he ever gonna stop doing that?"

Lukas shrugged. "I hope. I try to get him to stop, but.. well, you can see how well that goes." His brows furrowed, upon realizing something. "Wait a moment," he looked down the nearby halls to check if anyone was there. Then, he lowered his voice, almost whispering, "when you say she 'looks up to us,' does that include Aiden?"

Petra slapped the cushions of the couch, then whispered loudly, "It does! She looks up to the guy who keeps putting her down, it doesn't make any sense!"

"What the heck?" Still whispering, Lukas held his hands in front of his face, leaning his head on them. "Did she tell you why?"

Petra shook her head.

Long after this, they had slowly started to talk about other things. It was close to nightfall when Petra left, leaving Lukas alone in the living room.

Then Gill came into the room, a mug of chocolate in his hands. "So the loser looks up to us, huh?"

Lukas sighed. "Gill, don't start."

The teen laughed. "Ah, come on Lukas-"

"No, Gill. Really." The blonde cut him off, giving his older friend a tired glare, "You've got to stop. All three of you."

He got up and left for his room. Gill snorted, then drank his chocolate as he made his way back to his own room.

* * *

 _Three weeks ago_

Today was one of those days when the clouds had decided to almost completely cover the sun from view. It was only eight in the morning, and it looked to be almost 5 PM.

Lukas walked into the mineshaft, taking out a used iron pickaxe. The shaft itself didn't look too different than the outside- it was dimly lit, with at least one torch covering every 'room.' Someone must have already gone through here, he thought. The shaft wasn't like this the last time he was here.

He took a torch from his inventory and placed it at the entrance of the cave, then walked in. He carefully went down a makeshift, spiral staircase that led deep underground. Connected to some of the steps of the stairs was a floor, completely mined from before.

He passed by one of these, until he heard the sound of something falling on the ground, and the surprised squeek! of a girl.

He stopped in his tracks as his brows furrowed, confused. He turned to look to the direction of the sound, to see a stone pickaxe slide through the floor, towards him. He stopped it with his foot, pocketed his iron pickaxe, and picked it up. He looked at it curiously.

Then the sounds of footsteps echoed in the cave, causing him to look up. Turning from the corner was none other than Jesse, clad in her usual green shirt and yellow overalls, with an unbuttoned plaid shirt over it. It wasn't just the plaid that was different, though. A large part of her bangs, which were beginning to cover her eyes, he'd noticed, was dyed red.

Jesse jumped back in surprise. "Oh! Uh, h-hi Lukas." She said, shyly, "Wh-what are you doing here?"

"Nothing. Just mining, is all." He answered, simply. He held out the pickaxe. "Is this yours?"

"Oh!" She walked over in a hurry, taking the pickaxe from him. "Th-thank you. Yeah, it's mine."

"You're welcome." He looked over to her red bangs, then asked, "Did you dye your hair? It's nice."

She blinked, surprised at the sudden statement. Something had flashed in her eyes for a split second, but it disappeared before Lukas could even notice. "Y-you really think so?"

"Of course." He smiled, "It suits you."

She looked him in the eyes as she cocked her head to the side, curious. She bit her lip. "You're not l-lying to me?"

His smile fell, slightly. "I wouldn't lie to you, Jesse."

She paused, but then grinned. _I don't think I've ever seen her smile like that before_ , Lukas thought.

"Thanks, Lukas." She said sincerely.

* * *

Jesse left the mineshaft, fiddling with the sleeves of her plaid shirt. She'd already collected the materials she needed from the mines before she'd met Lukas, and had left after their short talk. Which was a good thing for her, because she needed to think without being distracted after what they had talked about.

"Lukas likes the red." She thought aloud, "So if he likes the red, then why did Aiden say that nobody would like it?"

 _It doesn't make sense._ She thought, _Aiden said he wasn't a liar. So when he said that nobody would like it, then that must mean he was telling the truth._

She folded and unfolded the long sleeves of her shirt in thought. So if he was telling the truth, then how come Lukas said it was nice?

"To be fair," She mumbled to herself, "He only said it was nice, but he didn't say he liked it."

 _But aren't those the same thing?_

She frowned. "Not really.."

 _Does that mean Aiden is a liar?_

"But he said so himself.."

Jesse stopped in her tracks. "Unless he was lying about not being a liar..."

 _But what reason would he have to lie?_ Her brows furrowed. _Is there really any point to questioning the motives of liars?_

She frowned, then shook her head. Unfolding the sleeves so that they completely covered her arms, the girl brisk walked home.

She'll think later.

* * *

 **A/N: this jesse might as well be called 'sheltered child'**

 **i mean come on, it took her eight years to figure out that someone could be lying about not being a liar  
**

 **this woman is sheltered**

 **ONE MORE TO GO OH THANK THE HEAVENS**

 **the 'epilogue' is already up, so go ahead and read that**

 **Reviews are appreciated. Thoughts are welcome, critiques are welcome. Pre-episode 5 Aiden-like behavior, however, isn't.**

 **Have a good day! :)**


	6. Her Answer

Jesse turned her head to Aiden in surprise. She looked away in thought, then looked back to him, her dark brown eyes looking straight into his light green ones. "I... I don't.." she brought a hand up to her mouth, and began to bite her nails, "I don't know."

Aiden blinked, confusion written all over him. "You don't know?" He laughed, "How do you not know?"

"I- I just don't!" She stammered, "I don't know anymore.."

This was intriguing, and.. somewhat frustrating. Of the three people in that group, Jesse was his main target- the one he wanted to hurt most. He hurled every possible insult he could at her, and they seemed to have worked, save for earlier when he mocked her cosplay.. So why didn't she know whether she hated him or not?

 _Why did you target her in the first place?_

He threw the thought away before he could even think too hard on it, instead focusing on talking to Jesse. Talking. That's a new one.

"What do you mean, 'you don't know anymore'?" He asked, crouching so that he was almost at eye level with her. She backed away in her seat at the sudden closeness.

She glanced from left to right, nervous. "I.. I don't think I should tell you.. d-don't think y-you're s-supposed to.." she gulped, "Uhm.. to tell.."

"Aw, what is it? Come on, you can trust me, can't you?"

Her brows furrowed, as if she had just realized something, then she looked directly at him.

"I.."

"Hey!"

Both turned their heads to the sound of the voice- which came from the entrance. And was also coming closer. And was also large and in green, accompanied by a smaller woman in red.

"What are you doing to Jesse?" Axel demanded.

Aiden got up quickly in a slight panic. "Nothing! Really, nothing! Seriously, Jesse can back me up on this one!"

The taller boy glared at Aiden, before he reached over for his friend's arm, pulling her up and hiding her behind him. She didn't protest.

"You better not."

It was just like Aiden to grab whatever opportunity at messing with the others he could. So, he crossed his arms, smirked and said, "And if I had been doing something to her? What would you have done about it?"

Before Axel could do anything, Olivia tugged at his sleeve. "Come on, Axel." She said, her voice darker than Aiden was used to, "He's not worth it."

She looked behind him and reached her hand out for Jesse. Then, she said in a much gentler voice, "Come on."

Jesse took Olivia's hand, and the older girl guided her away. She turned her head to Axel. "Are you coming?"

Axel held his glare on Aiden for several seconds, the latter silently taunting him as he did so. Finally, he looked back at Olivia. "Yeah, I'm coming."

Aiden watched Axel leave and follow his two friends. At the same time, Jesse had looked back and, for a moment, they met each other's gaze. She turned away just before she and the others disappeared in the darkness of the forest.

As that happened, his smile fell. Jesse's reply had come back to him. " _I don't know anymore_." He mumbled to himself.

What was that supposed to mean? Did she not hate him before, and only start to hate him now? Was it the opposite? He racked his brain for any possible answer, but found nothing.

He walked back home, the events that had just happened heavy on his mind.

* * *

 **A/N: i wrote this before i wrote the aiden flashback i'm crying**

 **/flops over and dies.** **I'll just add stuff to the bonus one and upload it, like.. I dunno, tomorrow or Friday, maybe.**

 **i have too many story ideas my goodness**

 **maybe I'll have another one up here (oh, the horror). Who knows.**

 **Reviews are appreciated. Thoughts are welcome, critiques are welcome. Pre episode 5 Aiden-like behavior, however, isn't.**

 **Have a good day! AND THANKS FOR READING! :D**


	7. Don't

**A/N: have you read chapter 5 yet be honest**

 **aLSO THIS THING HAS 700 VIEWS NOW WTH**

 **THANKS GUYS :'D**

* * *

Aiden shook his head. Maybe not.

He walked on, until he felt someone staring at him. He turned, but saw no one looking in his general direction. Jesse was still fiddling with her red bangs.

He frowned, but shrugged it off. Walking down the path home, the rest of his night was left uneventful.

* * *

Jesse's mind took her back to her meeting with Lukas three weeks ago at the mineshaft. It was only a few days after she dyed her hair, and after Aiden had insulted it. The latter had clouded her thoughts for days on end, she could barely even concentrate on trying to plan for the build. Which was odd- nothing has ever clouded her thoughts for so long before. Maybe that's why they failed this year.

She bit her lip, shaking her head internally. _I'm getting sidetracked_ , she thought, _I need to know if he's a liar or..._

She had already come to the conclusion that he couldn't have gotten tired of telling the truth- getting tired of doing something as simple as that couldn't even be possible. She ruled out Lukas lying, because he said so himself that he wouldn't lie.

Then her thoughts from before returned to her. _What if he lied about not being a liar?_

"But why would he do that?" She mumbled to herself, "That would be like saying Olivia lied about.."

She stopped mid sentence, her eyes widening upon realizing what she was just about to say.

 _That would be like saying Olivia lied about being my friend._

Jesse put a hand to her mouth in shock. _But there's no way_ , she tried to rationalize, _She wouldn't.._

 _But what if she did? What if she and Axel were lying this entire time? What if Reuben was too? And Petra?_ Her eyes began to water as she blinked rapidly, causing tears to roll down her cheeks.

She didn't notice the figure that was watching her, until it started to move. She rubbed her eyes and looked, recognizing Aiden as he began to walk towards the forest. She watched him, for a minute- then he began to turn, causing her to quickly look down and play with her bangs in an attempt to be inconspicuous.

From her peripheral, she checked to see if Aiden was still there. He wasn't. Giving a sigh of relief, she dropped her hands and gripped the bench, her thoughts plagued by the possibility of her friends not being who they said they were.

"Jesse!"

She looked up again to see her two friends walking to her from the entrance. "Hi guys." She said, her voice barely even audible as she got up from the bench. As they got closer, Axel slowed to a stop. His brow furrowed as he took a closer look at his friend. She shrunk, nervous.

"Hey, are you okay?" He put a hand on her shoulder, concern taking over. She smiled warily and placed her hand on his.

"Yeah, I am."

* * *

 **A/N: i'm still wondering why chapter 6 has more views than chapter 5 whEN IT COMES AFTER CHAPTER 5 AAUUGHH**

 **So i'd write another chapter for Why I Did It, but school is getting in the way. And by that i mean the next four days/week is gonna be busybusybusy, one after the other, so uh  
**

 **Reviews are appreciated. Thoughts are welcome, critiques are welcome. Pre-Episode 5 Aiden-like behavior, however, isn't.**

 **Have a fantastic day! AND THANKS FOR READING! :D**


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